


katara's request

by DaftWitch



Series: flowers and revelations [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Epilogue, Fluff, Happy Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:15:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26661292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaftWitch/pseuds/DaftWitch
Summary: Zuko woke that morning as he always did - with the pull of the sun drawing him from sleep and the sight of a sleeping Katara next to him.
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: flowers and revelations [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1939873
Comments: 3
Kudos: 80





	katara's request

**Author's Note:**

> please note that this is an epilogue for my fic "she's come undone" so please read that first!

Zuko woke that morning as he always did - with the pull of the sun drawing him from sleep and the sight of a sleeping Katara next to him.

He still struggled to believe that this was now his life. He had been so miserable for so long that he’d given up hope on a happy ending - he hardly thought he deserved it. But then, as fate handed him another cruel joke by making his heart finally fail, Katara had brought streaming sunlight into his life.

Now, as he lay admiring his wife, he felt almost overwhelmed with gratitude. As long as Katara loved him, he’d never want for anything. 

And Agni, was she beautiful. A lock of hair curled by her chin, her lashes fanned across her face and her mouth slightly parted as she breathed slowly. Zuko desperately wanted to kiss her until he couldn’t breathe but he figured that even on their wedding anniversary, she’d still probably kill him for waking her. Even for  _ that _ .

So instead he slid out of bed, silently got dressed and tip-toed out the room. As he did every morning he practiced his bending forms, had a bath and then went to the kitchen to make Katara and himself a pot of tea (old habits die hard). He also grabbed a few tarts which he’d asked to be made for their anniversary. 

As Zuko re-entered the room he shook his head at the sight of his still very much asleep wife. “Still not awake yet?”

Katara groaned pitifully as Zuko set down the tray with the tea, cups and tarts on them and sat on the edge of the bed. He reached a hand to move some hair from her face and was startled to find her skin burning hot. Frowning, he pressed the back of his palm to her forehead and sighed. “You have a fever,” he told her. 

“Would explain why I feel so horrible,” she grumbled.

“I’ll call for the healer.”

“And water.”

“You can’t heal a cold, Katara.”

“I’m  _ thirsty _ .”

He was very tempted to tease her but at the sight of her ill-tempered expression some self-preservation kicked in and instead he said, “Then water you shall have, my love.”

She shot him a dirty look. He guessed he hadn’t been very successful at keeping the smirk off his face. 

Whilst Zuko went to get a servant he thought, ‘ _ Well there goes our anniversary plans. _ ’

***

As Katara rested under the supervision of the palace healer and Zuko headed back to the kitchen. He remembered the times during his banishment when he’d been sick and his Uncle had cooked him a hearty soup with just enough spice that it helped to unplug his cold-ridden head. 

He didn’t quite remember the recipe but he distinctly remembered Uncle mentioning ginger and red onion. He was sure he could figure out the rest. 

***

Katara made a face. Believe it or not, he thought she was trying her best to be polite.

He hung his head and took the bowl off her. “I’ll get the chefs to cook you something else.”

****

Zuko travelled out to the palace’s greenhouses in an attempt to fulfil at least one of his anniversary plans. There weren’t many plants in the greenhouse as the Fire Nation’s climate was already ideal for plants which favoured warmth and humidity. But this particular one  _ really _ liked to be warm.

Katara’s flower. 

That was, of course, not its actual name but as far as his wife was concerned, Zuko had wanted to name it after her and therefore it was  _ her _ flower. 

He had wanted to recreate their first date but with Katara bed-bound that was going to be unlikely. But that wouldn’t stop him trying - he could still decorate their bedroom with bouquets and strewn petals because even if she was coughing and sweaty Zuko wanted to make this anniversary special for her. 

It had been an adjustment period for Katara - becoming Fire Lady. Firstly, she hadn’t settled anywhere for so long (apart from her short stint in the South Pole after she broke up with Aang) that suddenly finding herself as a permanent member of the royal household had thrown her. But as Katara was bound to, she flourished in her new role. Despite the council’s apprehension, she’d won them over like everyone else. Zuko reluctantly admitted that they liked her more than him these days. 

But this didn’t mean that he could really keep Katara pinned down. She worked closely with the ministers of culture and education whose projects sent her across the Fire Nation as she helped to set up multi-element bending schools in the hopes of raising a new generation of benders who worked together and not separately. Of course, there weren’t many air or water benders in the Fire Nation but they were encouraged to see some Earth Nation citizens who wanted a change of scenery migrating to towns with these schools. 

It had pleased Iroh to no end when Katara had told him that she had gotten the idea of these schools from his adaption of waterbender techniques to redirect lightning. “I think it’s the future of bending that we merge our techniques. Think of how many more innovations like that we could discover!” she had said.

But he wasn’t quite sure she’d ever get over the homesickness. At first it had pained her nightly as she stared up at the moon, imagining what her brother and the rest of her tribe were doing. “You don’t have to stay here with me,” he had told her, “We could make it work.” It wasn’t entirely truthful but he had been desperate to smooth away the sad expression on her face.

Katara had smiled ruefully. “I’m homesick for a place that doesn’t exist anymore,” she had sighed. “When I dream of home, I think of a handful of huts and Sokka’s leaning watchtower. The Southern Water tribe that’s there today is foreign to me. Even when I lived there I was homesick… No, I want to stay here.  _ This _ is where my future is. I can’t get my past back.” 

When they were served a pot of stewed sea prunes the next evening Katara had beamed so brightly at him that he felt a little tipsy for a while after.

Zuko desperately wanted to show her how much he appreciated everything she had done to make this future possible (the least of which being taking Fire Nation etiquette lessons from Mai). He’d had big plans to spoil her and whisk her away to a tropical island off the coast of the Fire Nation for a long weekend. It was just his luck that even his wedding anniversary would go awry.

When he returned to their bedroom with armfuls of flowers, Katara was still sleeping. A window was slightly ajar, allowing the cool late-afternoon breeze in as a tree rustled in the distance. 

The healer lifted her head to nod at the Fire Lord and let him know her fever had broken but she would still be very tired for a while. Zuko offered his thanks and dismissed her, wanting to be alone with his wife. 

As she slept, he decorated the room, filling a vase by their bed with the flowers, scattering petals on the floor and lighting candles. He climbed on the bed, sat on top of the covers and opened the book he’d left on his bedside table. 

Just under an hour later Katara began to shift and he put the book down. Zuko smiled warmly down at her, brushing a curl from her forward before taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. “How are you feeling?”

She hummed appreciatively as he moved to kiss her fingertips. “Better. Still all blocked up but the chills have gone.” A pause. “Sorry I ruined our wedding anniversary.”

Zuko shook his head. “As long as we’re together, that’s all that matters. And anyway, I can always postpone our mystery vacation for a week or two. The council won’t mind. They’d probably appreciate a break from your incessant need to meet with them.”

“Ha. Ha.”

Katara stretched, yawning. And then, with grumbling effort, she pushed herself up to lean up against the bedpost and then - “Hey… when did you do this?”

“Wondered how long it would take you to notice.”

She stared around the room and a large grin bloomed. “My flower!” she exclaimed, turning to him. “You're such a softie,” she hummed, taking his chin in her hand and leading him mouth to hers. 

It was this moment, with her lips against his, in this candlelit room… It was a moment he could live in forever.

They parted, their foreheads resting against the others. He hoped he made her as blissfully happy as she made him.

“Katara,” he breathed, “I just wanted to say than-“

“I want to have a baby.”

Zuko jolted backwards, needing to get a good look at her face. She was peering at him somewhat anxiously, but he could tell she was trying to look resolute. “A baby,” he repeated. 

“Yes. A baby.”

“With- uhm with me?” That was a stupid thing to say.

“Yes, idiot. With you, my husband.” Katara frowned. “I’m serious, Zuko. I want to start a family with you. I’m ready. Are… are you-“

“Yes.”

A sharp intake of breath. “Yes?” She was trying not to sound too excited, just in case.

He beamed widely, happiness making him giddy. “Yes, of course I want to have a baby with you. All my life… a real family is all I’ve ever wanted.”

Zuko accepted that there was never going to be able to really express just how much he appreciated and adored her. He guessed he would just have to keep trying.

***

On the eve of their second wedding anniversary Katara went into labour and as the new day dawned their daughter was born. 

She was perfect in every single way and when she finally opened her eyes they were a dazzling gold and Zuko cried.

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed! I've got another zutara fic idea spinning in my mind so hopefully you'll see more of me writing this pairing in the future xx


End file.
